A. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to articles for use in commercial and sport fishing. More particularly, the invention relates to small buoys used to mark the location of desirable fishing locations.
B. Background of the Invention
Commercial or sport fishermen on lakes or other relatively shallow waters oftentimes find it desirable to mark good fishing locations. Thus, locations beneath the surface of a river, lake or other body of water at which fish have been spotted or are likely to be found, may be discovered by the use of sonar echoes, or by other means. When desirable "holes" or other prospective locations for fish have thus been discovered, it is sometimes desirable to mark such locations, to allow time for a moving boat to return to the locations.
One method of marking such sub-surface locations is to drop small marker buoys at the locations. Typical marker buoys commonly used for such purposes have a buoyant plastic body. A length of flexible cord is attached to the body, and a weight attached to the other end of the cord. The body usually has a groove or space for holding the wound cord.
A number of prior art patents disclose devices usable as marker buoys of the type described above, or are related to marker buoys. Those prior art patents which the present inventor is aware of consist of the following U.S. Pat. Nos.:
Wilson, 584.615, June 15, 1957, Fishing Tackle Float. PA0 Turner, 2,860,442, Nov. 18, 1958, Bobbers With Water-Released Line Casting Reels. PA0 Hamm, 3,089,156, May 14, 1963, Marking Buoy. PA0 Laird, 3,162,870, Dec. 29, 1964, Anchor Light. PA0 Johnson, 4,501,563, Feb. 26, 1985, Marker Buoy. PA0 Saulnier, 4,778,422, Oct. 18, 1988, Buoy For Storing Rope Connected To An Underwater Article.
Each of the devices disclosed in the references cited above, except the Johnson patent, employs a reel for containing a cord or string attached to a weight. The Johnson patent discloses a marker buoy made of two pontoon-like side members, joined by a central rectangular section for holding a length of cord attached to a weight.
In some applications for fishermen's marker buoys, a substantial number of buoys are dropped at various locations from a rapidly moving boat, as sonar systems in the boat identify desirable sub-surface locations, or schools of fish. Because of the time and effort required to rewind the weight cord on a buoy when the buoy is retrieved, it would be desirable to provide means for more rapidly and conveniently rewinding the cord. However, because of the large number of buoys which are sometimes deployed, and the possibility of losing some buoys when a large number are distributed over a wide area, it would be desirable to provide a fisherman's marker buoy having an integral cord tale-up reel, facilitating rapid rewinding of a weight cord, yet being of a simplified design and construction which permits manufacturing the marker buoy at a low cost.